realpolitik
/ɹeɪˈɑːlpɒlɪˌtiːk/US/ɹeɪˈɑlpoʊlɪˌtik/
realpolitik noun: pragmatic, often expansionist, diplomacy and politics focused on perceived national interests of the state to the near exclusion of ethical, moral, and theoretical objectives.
Noun (1)
realpolitik (countable and uncountable, plural realpolitiks)
- Pragmatic, often expansionist, diplomacy and politics focused on perceived national interests of the state to the near exclusion of ethical, moral, and theoretical objectives.
- It is Realpolitik in sport, and a Realpolitik which is not wholly unknown in England; but while the spirit of Realpolitik is still perceivable in German sport, it is equally perceivable that the standard English way of viewing sporting competition is becoming more and more approached in Germany.1913, Stanley Shaw, William of Germany, page 357
- Possibly the Germans themselves regard their Realpolitik as but the continuation of the philosophic tradition of disillusionment: like Xenophanes they would remind us that the gods of the Ethiopians are snub-nosed and swart, of the Thracians blue-eyed and red-haired, and that if oxen had gods their...1918, Hartley Burr Alexander, Liberty and democracy: and other essays in war-time
Noun (2) capitalized: Realpolitik
Realpolitik (countable and uncountable, plural Realpolitiks)
- Alternative letter-case form of realpolitik.
realpolitik meaning in Tamil, Arabic, Indonesian and Persian
realpolitik in Tamil
- pragmatic international government policy
- மெய் அரசியல்சார் mey araciyalcār
realpolitik in Arabic
- pragmatic international government policy
- وَاقِعِيَّة سِيَاسِيَّة
realpolitik in Indonesian
- pragmatic international government policy
- realpolitik
realpolitik in Persian
- pragmatic international government policy
- سیاست واقعی siyâsat vâqe'i, واقعگرایانه vâqe'-garâyâne
More languagesFewer languages
- realpolitik in Thai
- การเมืองเชิงปฏิบัติ gaan-mʉʉang-chəəng-bpà-dtì-bàt, เรอาลโพลิทีค ree-aal-poo-li-tiik
Forms of realpolitik
| plural | realpolitiks |
|---|---|
| alternative form | Realpolitik |
| plural | Realpolitiks |
Origin of realpolitik
Borrowed from German Realpolitik (literally “practical, realistic, fact-based, realism-based politics”).
Words formed from realpolitik
Words that rhyme with realpolitik
48 more rhymesFewer rhymes
- leak
- seek
- bespeak
- pique
- tweak
- reek
- sleek
- geek
- peek
- squeak
- week
- wreak
- boutique
- clique
- creek
- forspeak
- gleek
- unique
- bleak
- cacique
- creak
- critique
- deke
- eek
- eke
- fleak
- on fleek
- respeak
- Tajik
- teak
- technique
- tongue-in-chic
- chic
- cleek
- desqueak
- leek
- malik
- meek
- midweek
- misspeak
- physique
- pratique
- shriek
- speke
- streek
- Zeke
- -speak
- Adam's Peak
Questions about realpolitik
- What does realpolitik mean?
- Realpolitik means pragmatic, often expansionist, diplomacy and politics focused on perceived national interests of the state to the near exclusion of ethical, moral, and theoretical objectives.
- What is realpolitik in Tamil?
- Realpolitik in Tamil is மெய் அரசியல்சார் (mey araciyalcār). See Realpolitik meaning in Tamil.
- What part of speech is realpolitik?
- Realpolitik is a noun.
- How do you pronounce realpolitik?
- Realpolitik is pronounced /ɹeɪˈɑːlpɒlɪˌtiːk/ (UK).
- What is the plural of realpolitik?
- The plural of realpolitik is realpolitiks.
Words near realpolitik in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: realpolitik (page history and authors); Realpolitik (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-realpolitik.wav.
Cite this entry: “realpolitik.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/realpolitik. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.